ROCKVILLE, IND. — Breaking out of the old Parke County Jail is a lot easier than it used to be — although today’s “inmates” might find they never want to escape.

The sturdy lockup, built in 1879, is now the Old Jail Inn, an unusual lodging that allows guests to experience life behind bars, albeit far more comfortably than the tenants of old could expect.

Owners Tony and Debra Winn didn’t mean to become innkeepers.

“I bought a door — and they threw in the building,” said Mrs. Winn, with just a bit of exaggeration.

County officials had been looking to unload the obsolete jail, which had last housed prisoners in 1998.

“It was going to cost more to tear down than the county wanted to spend,” Mrs. Winn said.

That’s easy to believe. As befitting a jail, the old building is solid. When the cell bars slide shut, they still do so with a satisfying (some would say terrifying) clang.

Mrs. Winn, an interior designer, had fallen in love with a huge metal door that once closed behind the inebriates occupying the drunk tank in the basement of the jail. She made an offer for the door, but officials eventually persuaded the Winns to take the whole property. It’s a good thing, too.

The picturesque Italianate building, which reopened as an inn in 2010, sits right on Courthouse Square, adding significantly to the charm of downtown Rockville — especially now that the structure serves more law-abiding visitors.

And so the door of Mrs. Winn’s dreams stayed where it was. Today, it’s a centerpiece of the inn’s Drunk Tank Winery, which is open to the public on weekends and by appointment — and more frequently for guests.

Mrs. Winn is not a drinker herself, but she has learned much about wine since opening the inn and winery, and takes pride in recommending bottles based on a visitor’s taste. Indiana’s own Huber’s Winery makes the inn’s house wine.

The building has been refurbished, but much of the original interior — including the cell doors — remains as it was.

Other features include recycled architectural items such as old wooden doors converted to bed headboards. Guests are encouraged to scribble their own (non- obscene) “jailhouse” graffiti messages on the walls.

“We repurposed a building, and have the decor to match,” Mrs. Winn said.

The inn offers a variety of rooms.

For those looking for the most authentic experience — or a fun place for an inexpensive stay with a group of friends — the jail’s main cellblock offers five snug cells that share a single bathroom. The cells, named for famous outlaws, don’t offer a lot of privacy, but guests do get earplugs in case they want to turn in before their cellmates.

Suites on the inn’s upper floor offer confinement that’s a bit more solitary.

As we made our way up the stairs, Mrs. Winn explained that we were entering the area where hardened criminals were once held until they could be transferred to other facilities.

“The idiots were down there,” she said, indicating the cellblock below, “but the real bad boys were up here.”

The upper floor once contained two large cells with four steel bunks that housed as many as 12 prisoners for periods of up to a year.

Today, each cell is a separate suite with its own private bath.

The old upper bunks remain (but with nice mattresses). The lower bunks have been replaced with comfortable queen-size pillow-top beds.

The Bonnie and Clyde suite is popular with couples, of course.

The largest suite is the Harley-Davidson. Motorcycle enthusiasts who stay often leave Harley mementos for the Winns to display.

The Harley suite is also the most private, with its own original solid steel door that can be shut for complete privacy.

The inn’s guests are eclectic, and groups often rent the entire building, Winn said.

“We get bikers, Bible groups, bicyclists and the red-hatter women’s groups,” she said.

“We’ve also had policemen from Detroit, Chicago, New York come to stay. Lots of law enforcement people have never been on this side of the bars. It’s kind of fun for them to say they’ve been in jail.”

And, yes, several former prisoners have returned.

“I get guys who were thrown in here for a night when they were 16,” Mrs. Winn said.

“Now they might be successful businessmen, but they love showing their kids how stupid they were.”

There’s plenty to see in and around Rockville while staying at the inn.

Parke County calls itself “the Covered Bridge Capital of the World” with good reason. The county has 31 covered bridges dating back to the 1850s and hosts an annual Covered Bridge Festival in the fall.